The top four players in the Green Bay Packers' greatest draft class had to first endure the worst season of football in franchise history.

Part of the nucleus of the Packers' 1960s dynasty — Dan Currie, Jim Taylor, Ray Nitschke and Jerry Kramer — was selected by personnel director Jack Vainisi in Rounds 1-4 of the 1958 NFL draft on Dec. 2, 1957.

There were two games left in what would finish as Green Bay's dismal 3-9 season under head coach Lisle Blackbourn.

With Green Bay's first five selections in the four rounds, Vainisi chose Currie in the first round (3rd overall), Taylor in the second (15th overall), Dick Christy (27th) and Nitschke (36th) in the third, and Kramer (39th) in the fourth.

Taylor (1958-'66) and Nitschke (1958-'72) were inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1976 and 1978, respectively, while Kramer (1958-'68) and Currie (1958-'64) were stalwarts on the offensive line and linebacker corps in their decorated Packers' tenure.

Blackbourn would not be around for Rounds 5-30 of the draft, which were held on Jan. 28, 1958. The lone highlight of those 26 rounds was Joe Francis, a quarterback from Oregon State, taken in the fifth round with the 51st overall selection.

The four-year head coach (17-31) was fired on Jan. 6, and assistant coach Ray "Scooter" McLean was named the Packers' fourth head coach in team history.

Despite not having a winning record to date in the decade of the '50s, Vainisi was methodically laying the foundation of a dynasty, assembling a pool of talent that sparked Green Bay to five NFL championships in seven seasons under Vince Lombardi.

Vainisi never saw the ultimate fruits of his labor, as the former scout, scouting director, and personnel director from 1950-'60 died at age 33 of a heart attack in Green Bay.

His death came just one month before Green Bay made it to the NFL Championship Game against the Philadelphia Eagles on Dec. 26, 1960.

"Jack Vainisi was highly regarded as a talent scout," Lee Remmel, former Packers team historian and public relations director, said in a 2007 Packer Plus interview. "He helped build a dynasty, and his 1958 draft is considered the best in team history."

Kramer said that fact was not evident to him as a rookie focused simply trying to make the Green Bay roster.

"I guess I'd say that it was a draft that became a great draft, but it didn't look like it at the time," Kramer said. "And I didn't think I'd even make the team. At the college all-star game, my line coach (a Baltimore Colts assistant coach) said Green Bay had five veteran guards, so I wasn't feeling the best about my chances."

Kramer also remembers the words of teammate Dave "Hawg" Hanner, a former Packers defensive lineman from 1952-'64.

"Hawg said that this is the most talent he'd ever seen on a football team," said Kramer, who was named to three Pro Bowls, five All-Pro teams, and the NFL 50th Anniversary Team in his 11-year career. "I looked around (the room) and I was excited."

So was Taylor, a former linebacker and fullback from LSU. Taylor, Nitschke, and Kramer all played in the College All-Star Game in Chicago and were late reporting to training camp.

"We were in Chicago for three weeks and then came to camp," Taylor said. "It was a big jump to the pros. There were fewer teams with smaller rosters than today and they drafted 30 college players.

"At LSU, I played middle linebacker. I had to work on specializing at the running back position, knowing your assignments. It was a learning experience."

Taylor also had a discussion in Chicago with Nitschke.

"I said, 'Ray, you'll be on defense, I'll be running the ball up in Green Bay,'" Taylor said with a laugh. "Ray was better off at defense. We both loved contact and the competition. I really did love the game of football. I was put on this earth to be a football player."

Taylor did not play much his rookie season, but he made a strong impression in the season's final two games in Los Angeles and San Francisco.

"I don't have a lot positive memories from that first year," Taylor said. "We stunk it up for 10 games. I rode the bench for most of the season. (McLean's) judgment as head coach was that this kid can't play right away. I really had no thoughts I could one day be a hall of famer."

After a 1-3-1 start, the Packers collapsed and lost their final six games to finish 1-10-1 — the worst record in team annals. The lone victory was a 38-35 shootout victory over the Eagles in Green Bay.

Green Bay was outscored, 382-193, by opponents and yielded 384 yards per game.

Taylor was one of the few bright spots in the losses to the Rams and 49ers, gaining more than 100 yards in each contest.

"Our season was lost and morale was down," Taylor said. "I guess Scooter had one foot out the door and had nothing to lose by giving his second-round draft choice a chance to show what I could do. It helped my confidence that I could play at the pro level."

Taylor went on to become a league and NFL Championship Game MVP and the franchise's leading rusher until Ahman Green broke the record nearly decades later.

Currie lived up to his No. 1 billing, starting at outside linebacker as a rookie and earning Pro Bowl honors in 1960 and All-Pro from 1961-'63. He played in 90 regular season games in seven seasons and on the two NFL championship teams in 1961-'62.

Green Bay drafted Dave Robinson of Penn State in 1963, and Currie was traded to the Los Angeles Rams for receiver Carroll Dale after an 11-2-1 season.

"That first season — 1-10-1 — was rough but we still got a paycheck," Currie said in Packer Plus interview in 2006. "We had a dominant defense with a lot of good players — you were just fine under Lombardi if you did you job. And that's what I tried to do."

Nitschke was the emotional leader who personified the Packers defense of the 1960s dynasty for 15 seasons.

Nitschke's jersey is one of only five numbers formally retired by the franchise at this time, and he is still one of the most beloved players in franchise history. A bridge was renamed in his honor by the City of Green Bay after his death in 1998, and the Packers dedicated one of their two outdoor practice fields in his honor.

Nitschke was a defensive stalwart on five NFL championship teams from 1961-'67 under Lombardi. He was a seven-time All-Pro and the most valuable player in the 1962 NFL Championship Game, when Green Bay defeated the New York Giants, 16-7.

He was elected to the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1978, and was named to the NFL's All-50 Year and 75th Anniversary teams.

"Ray was a 100-percenter — a guy that never slacked off," said former teammate Forrest Gregg. "Whether it was a practice or a game, the first play or the last or a close game or a blowout. That's just the kind of player he was.

"He had all the physical tools, the size and the speed and the athletic ability. But most of all he had the temperament of a middle linebacker — he hit anyone who came close to him."

The 1958 draft class was the result of Vainisi, who cultivated a vast network of college coaches in his nationwide search for talent.

"Jack had a network of people all over the country," said Pat Peppler, former Green Bay scouting and personnel director from 1963-'71. "He worked very hard and was respected in the colleges. I was an assistant at North Carolina State, and I'd give Jack scouting reports at the end of the season for $100."

Vainisi's reputation for assessing talent grew as he pushed for the drafting of Paul Hornung with the Packers' bonus pick in 1957.

"Jack was a Notre Dame boy, and he pushed for the Packers to draft me," Hornung said. "I loved Jack Vainisi — all the players did. He even got along with Lombardi.

"He was a football man — that's what he was. Pure and simple. He brought so much talent to Green Bay, but it took Lombardi to make us champions."